The NCL Haven Luxury VIP Experience "Secrets" REVISED for 2022

[2boyzmom]

My letter usually consists of cheese and crackers at 3pm and m&m's written on the back of a drink napkin :). And to think I'm a New Yorker 😘

Edited November 1, 2022 by 2boyzmom

[renji]

On 10/30/2022 at 6:07 PM, Sthrngary said:

I thought it was there.  Sorry, I will attempt to do so in the future and thank you for the complement.  

 

A little history.  When I first attached the letter and how I used it, I got so much push back.  People hated it and especially objected to my upfront gratuities.  Fast forward to today.  I get at least two requests a week for the letter.  No more push back and everyone uses it differently. 

 

It makes me feel good that something I do, gives others benefit.  It keeps me motivated so thank you.

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment.  

Yet another question about that—we’ve historically started with a half to a third of the total tip and then given another $100 to $200 at the end depending on service.  I would worry if I tipped it all upfront that might confuse the butler/attendant/waiter’s expectations. Or am I overthinking?

[Sthrngary]

8 minutes ago, renji said:

Yet another question about that—we’ve historically started with a half to a third of the total tip and then given another $100 to $200 at the end depending on service.  I would worry if I tipped it all upfront that might confuse the butler/attendant/waiter’s expectations. Or am I overthinking?

@renjiYour question is, "Am I over thinking?"  The answer to that is based on who you talk to.  Some folks when they here I provide gratuities upfront, really get on my case.  They hate the idea.  Other think it is a great idea.  I have explain my reasoning over and over again.  FYI, I was having less then great service from butlers on Main Stream Cruise Brands.  It was a bit frustrating to me and took the benefit of a Butler as a non-issue.  Then one day, I had a very nice conversation with a butler.  In the nicest way, he told me that many guest don't know that NCL does not provide them with any gratuities.  Guest leave the ship thinking that the gratuities we Pre-Pay with NCL have a portion for them.  

 

When I heard this, I tried the letter which evolved over time and full gratuity upfront.  From that day, my butlers would do anything to make our trip great.  If you choose to give nothing upfront, a portion or all of the gratuity, it really does not matter.  It is explained in the letter and most folks that have done this agree, the service has been consistently better. 

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

[Perkolater]

On 11/1/2022 at 10:05 AM, Sthrngary said:

 

Butler_NCL_Cruises_Template.docx 25.01 kB · 22 downloads

THANK YOU!!!!!

[Sthrngary]

1 hour ago, Perkolater said:

THANK YOU!!!!!

My pleasure.  If you have any questions, just let me know.  

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment. 

[Laszlo]

I should know this but I don't. Does the Haven Restaurant (Getaway) take reservations?

[cruiseny4life]

17 minutes ago, Laszlo said:

I should know this but I don't. Does the Haven Restaurant (Getaway) take reservations?

Nope! 

[vacation44]

On 11/1/2022 at 6:37 PM, 2boyzmom said:

My letter usually consists of cheese and crackers at 3pm and m&m's written on the back of a drink napkin :). And to think I'm a New Yorker 😘

Fellow New Yorker (Long Island too!) and our letter to our Butler was received very well, but unfortunately,  she did not really acknowledge our requests.    Hoping for a better experience in March on the Epic.

[2boyzmom]

Are Haven slippers still a thing? Packing tonight 😉

[cruiseny4life]

58 minutes ago, 2boyzmom said:

Are Haven slippers still a thing? Packing tonight 😉

They were on the Getaway in September

[Sthrngary]

2 hours ago, vacation44 said:

Fellow New Yorker (Long Island too!) and our letter to our Butler was received very well, but unfortunately,  she did not really acknowledge our requests.    Hoping for a better experience in March on the Epic.

I am from Melville, NY.  Hello fellow Long Islanders.  I was the author of the original Butler letter.  It is not perfect but it created a much higher % of good butlers to bad ones.  No system is perfect.  

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

[Sthrngary]

1 hour ago, 2boyzmom said:

Are Haven slippers still a thing? Packing tonight 😉

Yes and robes.  If you have more than two folks in your room, ask the butler for more slippers and robes. 

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment. 

[mtrancher]

And you get to keep the slippers. The robes they will charge you if you take them, but the slippers are yours to take home and remember a time when you have nothing to concern you!

[Wink87]

On 10/31/2022 at 9:37 AM, CDR Benson said:

 

On the day of our wedding, a few decades ago, the limousine brought the Good Soon-to-Be Mrs. Benson to the church.  Almost as soon as she stepped out, you'd think a calamity had ensued.

 

It was five minutes before she was scheduled to start down the aisle.  The train to my wife-to-be's gown had ripped free and her maid of honour could not get it reättached.  At the same time, my then-sister-in-law, who was handling the logistics, frantically announced that the flowers for the church had not yet arrived.  Meanwhile, the four-year-old ring bearer had decided this was the perfect time to launch into a kicking-and-screaming temper tantrum.

 

"What will we do?" they all cried.  "Everything's not ready!"

 

It was now one minute to show time.  My wife calmly asked if I was there.

 

He is, said my sister-in-law.

 

"Then, we're ready," declared my wife.  "Let's go!"

 

 

As long as he's there, ma'am, there are no shortcomings.

 

 

 

 

 

Well said!

[mconthehighseas]

2 hours ago, Sthrngary said:

I am from Melville, NY.  Hello fellow Long Islanders.  I was the author of the original Butler letter.  It is not perfect but it created a much higher % of good butlers to bad ones.  No system is perfect.  

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

Hello fellow Long Islanders!  I haven't been there since my family moved across country, but I hope to get back there sooner rather than later.

[Sailing12Away]

9 hours ago, mconthehighseas said:

Hello fellow Long Islanders!  I haven't been there since my family moved across country, but I hope to get back there sooner rather than later.

The one thing about traveling is that we realize how expensive it is to be living here. We semi jokingly always scout real estate store signs of listings everywhere we travel. I can get a nice little bungalow on an island somewhere for what we're paying just in taxes alone in Nassau county.

[Grimix]

2 hours ago, Sailing12Away said:

The one thing about traveling is that we realize how expensive it is to be living here. We semi jokingly always scout real estate store signs of listings everywhere we travel. I can get a nice little bungalow on an island somewhere for what we're paying just in taxes alone in Nassau county.

One of the reasons we wanted to get out of NY (We were upstate NYers outside Syracuse for 13 years.) Mortgage on the home $1400, taxes on the home... $1000. So even once you paid off your mortgage you still get to pay $1000/month to live where it feels like it snows 6 months of the year, Hot and unbearably humid, mosquito ridden for 5 months, and absolutely beautiful for a month in fall!

 

(I still miss the fireflies in summer though!)

[Sailing12Away]

22 minutes ago, Grimix said:

One of the reasons we wanted to get out of NY (We were upstate NYers outside Syracuse for 13 years.) Mortgage on the home $1400, taxes on the home... $1000. So even once you paid off your mortgage you still get to pay $1000/month to live where it feels like it snows 6 months of the year, Hot and unbearably humid, mosquito ridden for 5 months, and absolutely beautiful for a month in fall!

 

(I still miss the fireflies in summer though!)

Yeah... The beauty of being in an incorporated village is you get to add another 6k/yr in taxes to that figure for us. And this is all for a 40x100 postage stamp plot of land. At least in the boonies you get a bit more for your money.

[mearsfansinboise]

On 10/31/2022 at 3:56 PM, Sailing12Away said:

Regarding the butler letter, on our trip in May on the Star, we had both the butler and concierge specifically comment on it saying they wished other guests were as straight forward and upfront as their NY ones. 

 

"NY'ers know what they want and are not shy about asking for it. It makes our job easier knowing what we can do to keep you happy and make it a great vacation." 

 

So at least in that experience, the staff appreciate the letter. Easier to keep track of what each room likes/doesn't like and giving a little bit of personality on the guests themselves makes you more memorable. So much easier having a face with a name and some info beyond "Mr/Mrs Jones in 17123".

The staff do talk about the guests as well.... apparently there are photos hanging up in the crew only areas. We're hoping our faces were on there and stories shared about our previous trips with NCL due to us being in a garden villa and "good" guests not for being the PIA ones.

 

Photos in crew areas, really?  I have seen that on those Below Deck television shows.  I did wonder on our recent sailing how a hostess in the Haven restaurant who we had not yet seen greeted us by name before getting our cards.  Hmmm ...  I can only hope we were in the nice column - lol

[mearsfansinboise]

On 11/1/2022 at 5:26 PM, renji said:

Yet another question about that—we’ve historically started with a half to a third of the total tip and then given another $100 to $200 at the end depending on service.  I would worry if I tipped it all upfront that might confuse the butler/attendant/waiter’s expectations. Or am I overthinking?

I agree - if you tipped it all upfront, how would they know if more was coming?  And, would they err on thinking more was coming - - and then it didn't?  Maybe I'm overthinking your question too - - but I like the 1/3 (or less) idea, that's what we do.

[mearsfansinboise]

17 hours ago, 2boyzmom said:

Are Haven slippers still a thing? Packing tonight 😉

Got them and used them last month on the Bliss; and took the extra pair home for grandma's Christmas stocking - lol

[mearsfansinboise]

15 hours ago, mtrancher said:

And you get to keep the slippers. The robes they will charge you if you take them, but the slippers are yours to take home and remember a time when you have nothing to concern you!

We actually saw a grandmother (very clearly was the grandmother of the group) in the Haven lounge at debarkation in the robe and the slippers.  I'm like - I hope granny knows she's payin' for that!  😬🙃

[rbxlady]

16 hours ago, cruiseny4life said:

They were on the Getaway in September

Still were in October. They are cheap slippers, though, so we did not take them home. I did, however, find an unopened pair in a drawer and took that home. People sell them on eBay for around $10, so that's why I snagged it, but I might just give them to my older son, since his feet are almost as big as mine.

 

I really appreciated the slippers, though, because I don't go barefoot around my own house, which is mostly hardwood floors that are cleaned regularly, never mind in a hotel or a cruise ship cabin with carpets that probably don't get more than a quick vacuum every couple of days at the most. I didn't want to pack "house shoes", as they are pretty cumbersome (I wear cloud sandals, which are so, so comfy).

 

Edited to add that I really only joked about selling them on eBay.

Edited November 3, 2022 by rbxlady

[rbxlady]

16 hours ago, Sthrngary said:

Yes and robes.  If you have more than two folks in your room, ask the butler for more slippers and robes. 

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment. 

We just disembarked this past Saturday, and our 2BR suite had two robes and two pairs of slippers in the master and two robes in the secondary but no slippers. Our kids are 9 and 11, so the robes would've been big on them, but our older son could've used the slippers (his feet are almost as big as mine). I never bothered to ask, but the night before we left, I was checking drawers and found an unopened pair in a drawer that we didn't use, so he could have had a pair. Oh, well.

[Sthrngary]

56 minutes ago, mearsfansinboise said:

I agree - if you tipped it all upfront, how would they know if more was coming?  And, would they err on thinking more was coming - - and then it didn't?  Maybe I'm overthinking your question too - - but I like the 1/3 (or less) idea, that's what we do.

I provide the whole thing up front.  If the do an "Over the TOP" job, I will provide some more.  My point is let them know, that I know they are not included in the gratuities program.  Seems like it would be a lot easier if NCL just included the Butler but than I would think they would not get all the money.  

 

The general rule is all of us need to do what feels right to us.  Subjective just like which restaurant we like best. 

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment.